Japan Intercultural Institute

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A webinar series that explores the psychological impact of intercultural experiences, informed by the sciences of brain, culture and mind. We look at the personal growth that can come from—travel, working and living abroad, immigrating, learning a foreign language—and the challenges of bridging different cultural worlds.

Japan Intercultural Institute


    • May 18, 2025 LATEST EPISODE
    • monthly NEW EPISODES
    • 33m AVG DURATION
    • 56 EPISODES


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    Latest episodes from Japan Intercultural Institute

    Episode 56 – Culture, Scarcity and Flourishing

    Play Episode Listen Later May 18, 2025 42:52


    Episode 55: Evolution: How Culture Made Us Human

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 15, 2025 35:46


    Episode 54 – Love Across Cultures

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 15, 2025 38:55


    Episode 53 – Language Learning: More than a Code

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 15, 2025 44:34


    Episode 52 – Culture and Religion (Part 2): Navigating Worldviews

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 15, 2025 44:43


    Episode 51: Culture and Religion (Part 1): Starting Conversations

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 18, 2024 47:09


    Are you a believer? 84% of the world's population identifies with religion, yet intercultural education barely mentions the topic. In Part 1 of this two-part episode, Joseph Shaules and Ishita Ray explore the connection between culture and religion. We learn how culture shapes attitudes towards secular and religious values from: Sanne Bosma, Emre Seven, Torhild Liane Harr Skarnes, Luan Borges de Carvalho, and P. V Satyanarayana Raju. Religious studies scholar David Shaules argues that religion and culture are closely related, and that secular values do not magically make us neutral. In Part 2, we will hear the experiences of those navigating in and between religious and secular worldviews.

    Episode 50 – Expanding Your Circle of Empathy

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 15, 2024 34:46


    Episode 49 – Cultural Misunderstanding

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 15, 2024 34:38


    Episode 48 – Beyond WEIRD (Pt 2): Deep Culture Learning

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 15, 2024 34:23


    Ep. 47 Summer Re-run: Tagore, Empathy and the Other

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 15, 2024 37:07


    Episode 46 – Beyond WEIRD Approaches to Intercultural Education: Part 1

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 15, 2024 37:11


    weird approaches intercultural education
    Episode 45 – Who Needs Intercultural Education?

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 15, 2024 32:00


    intercultural education
    Episode 44 – Gender and Culture: Expectations

    Play Episode Listen Later May 15, 2024 37:59


    Proxemics–Your Space or Mine?

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 15, 2024 32:53


    space mine proxemics
    Episode 42 – Cultural Intuitions and the Feel-good Fallacy

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 15, 2024 30:06


    Episode 41 – Motivation and Culture

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 15, 2024 31:34


    Episode 40 – Cultural Explorer Franz Boas

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 15, 2024 31:06


    Episode 39 – Culture and the Unconscious Mind

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 18, 2023 33:09


    Episode 38 – Transformation and the Road Less Traveled

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 15, 2023 37:32


    Episode 37 – Tagore, Empathy and the Other

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 15, 2023 36:43


    Episode 36 – Edward Hall Ahead of His Time

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 15, 2023 31:48


    Episode 35 – Re-run: Rubber Time or Slaves to the Clock?

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 16, 2023 32:19


    Episode 34 – Thoughts on Season 3

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 16, 2023 36:20


    Episode 33 – Stereotypes!

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 14, 2023 37:04


    Episode 32 – What is Intercultural Competence?

    Play Episode Listen Later May 15, 2023 43:00


    Episode 31 – Values

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 16, 2023 37:50


    Episode 30 – Ethnocentrism

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 15, 2023 36:19


    Episode 29 – Culture and Emotion

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 15, 2023 32:41


    Episode 28 – The Complexity of Culture

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 14, 2023 31:57


    Episode 27 – Are you a Global Citizen?

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 15, 2022 33:36


    The Trouble With Cultural Difference

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 15, 2022 35:08


    Joseph Shaules and Yvonne van der Pol explore why it can be so hard to talk about culture and measure cultural difference. They discuss three ways of looking at culture . . . as being, doing, and seeing. They discuss “classic” research into cultural difference (e.g. Hofstede) and argue that brain-mind sciences are shedding new light on cultural difference and can help us make better sense of our intercultural experiences. 

    Episode 25 – My Comfort Zone

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 16, 2022 31:01


    Episode 24 – Are you WEIRD?

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 15, 2022 32:36


    Episode 23 – Best of Season 2

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 15, 2022 31:48


    Episode 22 – Culture and the Self

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 15, 2022 31:28


    Episode 21 – Culture in the Cradle

    Play Episode Listen Later May 15, 2022 31:32


    Episode 20 – What makes home a home?

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 17, 2022 29:39


    Episode 19 – Why do we think differently?

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 15, 2022 31:28


    Episode 18 – Culture Shock

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 15, 2022 33:26


    Episode 17 – Honor and Diversity

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 14, 2022 29:43


    Episode 16 – A Conversation with Bob Whiting

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 16, 2021 39:58


    Episode 15: Rubber Time or Slaves to the Clock?

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 15, 2021 31:44


    Episode 14 – Cultural Resistance and the Eternal Tourist

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 15, 2021 33:12


    Episode 13 – Deep Culture: You can't get that from Wikipedia!

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 15, 2021 32:44


    Episode 12 – Cultural Bridge People

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 15, 2021 34:02


    Episode 11 – Beyond Dos and Don’ts

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 15, 2021 25:59


    People often want to learn cultural Dos and Don'ts when going abroad—such as: “In Japan, present your business card with both hands.” But rules like this often don't get you very far. Culture is much more complex than any set of etiquette rules. How should we respond to such requests? Why are simplistic questions or stereotypical statements about culture so common? In this episode, Yvonne van der Pol and Joseph Shaules explore this Dos and Don'ts dilemma from the brain-mind perspective. We ask: What's the difference between surface and deep levels of cultural understanding? How can we go beyond Dos and Don'ts?

    Episode 10 – Language, Culture and Mind

    Play Episode Listen Later May 15, 2021 30:16


    Why are some things—such as the Dutch word gezelligheid—so hard to translate? Will technology make language learning obsolete? Does speaking a foreign language change how you look at the world? In this episode, Joseph Shaules and Yvonne van der Pol explore such questions from the brain and mind science perspective. They talk about linguaculture—language and culture as two parts of a larger, complex, dynamic whole. They discuss embodied simulation theory, which proposes that language use involves an embodied process of mental simulation; it’s much more than a manipulation of mental symbols. All this helps us understand why language learning helps us enter into other cultural worlds, and remains important for intercultural bridge people everywhere.

    Episode 9 – Bias is not bias

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 15, 2021 32:57


    In this episode, Joseph Shaules and Yvonne van der Pol talk about cognitive biases – the “natural” mental shortcuts that make us jump to conclusions, misjudge, favor the familiar, be ethnocentric, and more. Cultural bridge people need to understand cognitive biases because they are so often triggered in intercultural situations. You will hear a story about a bicycle from Yvonne, and we even discuss the bhavacakra—The Buddhist Wheel of Life. It reminds us that waking up to the biases within us is an important step towards deeper intercultural understanding.

    Episode 8 – Empathy Across Cultures

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 15, 2021 23:40


    In this episode, we explore empathy – the ability to look at things from another person’s perspective. We discuss the importance of empathy for cultural bridge people, and why it can be difficult in intercultural situations! Yvonne talks about empathy in her hometown and Joseph tells a story of failed empathy on a freezing street corner in Tokyo. We also look at what science can teach us about empathy—it involves many cognitive systems and is linked with motivation! We are thankful for the work of Jamil Zaki, whose insights helped inspire this episode.

    Episode 7 – The Oz Moment

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 15, 2021 26:52


    Joseph and Yvonne discuss the “Oz Moment”—the experience of wonder and surprise that comes from first experiencing the sights, sounds and sensations in a foreign place. This episode explores the mental processes that lead to Oz Moment experiences. We hear from Ayako, who had a life-changing experience when she stepped into the restroom at LAX. Oz moments teach us a lot about how our mind works when we have intercultural experiences.

    Episode 6 – A Conversation with Karen Hill Anton

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 14, 2021 40:08


    This episode features a conversation with Karen Hill Anton. For many years Karen wrote the greatly-loved Crossing Cultures column for the Japan Times. Karen arrived in Japan in 1975. Unlike many expatriates, however, she didn’t leading a cosmopolitan lifestyle in Tokyo. She and her husband Bill settled in a rustic farmhouse on the side of a mountain deep in Shizuoka prefecture, where they raised their family and integrated into the local community. Karen is a writer, dancer, artist and intercultural trainer and consultant. We discuss her new memoir—the View from Breast Pocket Mountain—and reflect on the challenges and rewards of intercultural living.

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